Advances in Optical Measurement Techniques for Solar Concentrators

Abstract

Both mirror alignment of parabolic troughs and shape and tracking accuracy of heliostats are key parameters for the performance of solar thermal power plants. DLR has developed several techniques based on close-range photogrammetry to measure these parameters. Recently, these methods have experienced some improvements concerning feasibility, accuracy, and time consumption. The automatic quality assurance tool QFoto has been enhanced to evaluate the performance of one collector element in less than ten minutes without using targets on the mirror attachment points. This is accomplished by using geometrical properties of the mirror attachment points and advanced image processing. Further improvements concerning the accuracy of monitoring and characterization of heliostat tracking could be achieved by exploiting the exterior orientation of close-range photogrammetry